Denver Nuggets We Have A Problem

Denver Nuggets we have a problem. Attention Mr. President send in the national guards – trade talks with the New Jersey Nets have come to a screeching halt. Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov instructed the team’s front office to cease talks with the Nuggets about a trade for Carmelo Anthony, leaving Denver with a lot less leverage in their efforts to deal their star forward before the Feb. 24 trade deadline. While Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri has said that the team was ready for the Nets’ withdrawal, Prokhorov’s decision “came as a shock” to the organization, which has been privately confident that New Jersey would not back away from the bargaining table, The Denver Post reported.

Now, Denver is working the phones in search of other willing trading partners, according to ESPN.com. While the Nets clearly had the most to offer, the Knicks remain a potential landing spot for Anthony, and there may be some teams willing to trade for Anthony even if he’s not willing to sign a long-term deal with them.

Teams in the hunt now include Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets. Sources are saying that teams may be willing to offer enough expiring contracts, draft picks and young players in a package that’s more valuable than what the Knicks are willing to give up, the website said. The Knicks, Anthony’s preferred destination, may be willing to wait out the season and sign Anthony as a free agent without having to give up anything in exchange. SI.com, however, wrote that the Knicks will not be able to sign Anthony as a free agent in anything close to a max deal and fit the contract under the salary cap.

Another reason why becoming a free agent is not necessarily a preferable scenario for Anthony is that the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement expires at season’s end, and it may be impossible for him to get a deal that’s equal to the three-year, $65 million offer that’s currently on the table.